Support for draperies and the like



p 3967 J. v. GRABER ETAL 3,341,886

SUPPORT FOR DRAPERIES AND THE LIKE Filed Aug. 6, 1965 2 Sheets-Sheet 1 Sept. 19, J. v. GRABER ETAL SUPPORT FOR DRAPERIES AND THE LIKE 2 Sheets-Sheet 2 Filed Aug. 6, 1965 a o 8 6 2 M&%. I?

a I H a a w 2 3 4 03 7 ma l 1! w'r eyfl United States Patent 3,341,886 SUPPORT FOR DRAPERIES AND THE LIKE Joseph V. Graber and Ferdinand F. Saltzmann, Madison, Wis., assignors to Graber Manufacturing fiornpany Inc., Middletown, Wis., a corporation of Wisconsin Filed Aug. 6, 1965, Ser. No. 477,827 12 Claims. (Cl. 16-95) ABSTRACT OF THE DISCLOSURE An internal splice member for holding two rod sections generally aligned and abutted end-to-end. A pulley housing removably mounted on the internal splice member.

This invention relates to improvements in supports for draperies, curtains, tapestries and the like.

For convenience, the improved support of the present invention is herein sometimes referred to as a drapery support; however, this is done by way of illustration and it should be understood that the support may be used with any type of drapery, curtain, tapestry, or other similar flexible hanging.

It is an object of this invention to provide a new and useful drapery support including at least two rod sections abutted end-to-end and having an internally disposed splice member for holding the rods generally aligned and in said abutted relationship without interference with movement of slides along the drapery support.

Another object of this invention is to provide a drapery support including two rod sections abutted end-to-end and having an internally disposed splice member which holds the rod sections in aligned relation and also detachably supports a pulley housing in one of the rod sections.

A further object of this invention is to provide a new and useful drapery support including an elongate rod having a pulley housing which is easily removed from the rod and which can be installed into operating position either before or after the rod has been mounted into position with all assurance that when said pulley housing is installed it will be firmly and accurately aligned.

A still further object of this invention is to provide a new and useful drapery support in accordance with the foregoing objects and including a splice member and a pulley housing engaged therewith capable of being used with a double-channel elongated rod adapted for mounting generally contiguous to a ceiling.

Other objects of this invention are to provide a new and useful drapery support which is attractive, which can be easily assembled, and which can be readily and economically manufactured.

These, together with other objects and advantages of the invention, will be more readily appreciated as the same becomes better understood by reference to the following detailed description when taken in accordance with the accompanying drawings wherein:

FIGUIE l is a perspective view of an embodiment of this invention;

FIG. 2 is an exploded perspective view of several components of the embodiment illustrated in FIG. 1;

FIG. 3 is a view taken generally along line 33 of FIG. 2 and showing a portion of the components of FIG. 2 in assembled relationship and having a segment broken away to better illustrate the relationship of the parts;

FIG. 4 is an elevational view of the components illustrated in FIG. 2 in assembled relationship and having a segment broken away to better illustrate the relationship of the parts;

FIG. 5 is an end view taken generally along line 55 of FIG. 4;

FIG. 6 is a sectional view taken generally along broken line 66 of FIG. 5; and

FIG. 7 is a sectional view taken generally along line 7-7 of FIG. 6.

Reference is now made more particularly to the drawings wherein similar reference characters designate corresponding parts throughout the several views. In general, the drapery support of the present invention includes an elongate rod section, generally designated by the numeral 10, an elongate end rod section or member 12, an internal splice member 14, and a pulley housing, generally designated 16. The embodiment illustrated in FIG. 1 conveniently has a second elongate end rod section or member 18 abutted to the right-hand end of elongate rod section 10. In the preferred form of the invention, elongate rod sections 10 and 12 are abutted end to end and splice member 14 is disposed inside each rod, adjacent the abutted ends thereof, to align the rods and to hold them in said abutted relationship. Splice member 14 also has means for receiving and holding pulley housing 16 in a manner which will hereinafter be described. Elongate end rod section 18 also advantageously has a splice member and pulley housing associated therewith and since elongate end member 18 is the other hand embodiment of elongate end member 12, the descriptions of elongate end member 12, and the splice member 14 and pulley housing associated therewith will serve to illustrate the features of elongate end member 18 and further description is deemed unnecessary.

In the embodiment illustrated, elongate rod 10 includes a generally upright front wall or front face 20 and a rearwardly extending top wall 22 attached generally at the upper end of the front face, as best seen in FIG. 7. A rearwardly extending bottom wall 24 is attached to the lower end of the front face and has an upwardly extending flange 26 attached to the rear end of the bottom wall. A downwardly extending flange 27 is attached to the top wall 22. The front wall 20, bottom wall 24, top wall 22, and flanges 26 and 27 define a front passageway extending generally the full length of elongate rod 10. Flanges 26 and 27 have their adjacent edges 26a, 27a spaced apart to provide a rearwardly opening access to the front passageway for movement of slides or carriers such as carriers 37 and master carriers 38, 38' along the passageway. Elongate rod 10 conveniently has a second passageway disposed behind the above described front passageway and spaced a distance behind the rearwardly opening slots between flanges 26 and 27. For this purpose, top wall 22 conveniently has a rearwardly extending portion 22a, as best seen in FIG. 7. The rear passageway is defined by a pair of parallel wall means attached to the rear portion 22a and depending therefrom and, as shown, includes a first wall 31 spaced rearwardly of the aforementioned slot and a second wall 32 attached adjacent the rear edge of top wall portion 22a. The rear passageway has a longitudinal slot or trackway 33 extending the length thereof and, as shown, is formed between flanges 33a and 33b on the lower edges of the Walls 31 and 32. Elongate rod 10 preferably has a pair of longitudinal projections on the inner surface thereof and extending generally the full length thereof for engaging splice member 14. As shown, these projections are in the form of flanges or rails 31a and 32a attached to walls 31 and 32, respectively and spaced from the slot 33 to avoid interference with movement of carriers therealong.

Elongate end rod section '12 has a front passageway defined by a front wall and top and bottom walls having a generally equal cross-section with the corresponding walls of elongate rod section 10. Similar par-ts are, therefore, designated by the same number followed by the postscript prime as best seen in FIG. 5. In a manner similar to that described above, top wall 22 has a rearw-ardly extending portion 22a. Preferably, end rod section 12 has a depending wall aligned with one of the parallel wall means of elongate rod 16 when the aforedescribed front passageways of each rod are aligned. In the embodiment illustrated, end rod section 12 has a depending wall 34 attached adjacent the rear end of top wall portion 22a. End rod 12 preferably has a pair of longitudinal projections on the inner surface thereof for engaging splice member 14 and, as shown, includes a flange or rail 34a on wall 34, and a rail 36 mounted and depending from portion 22a of top wall 22'.

In the preferred embodiment of the invention, elongate rod sections 310 and 12 are abuttcd end-to-end and have an internal splice member 14 disposed inside the elongate rod sections adjacent the abutted ends thereof for holding the rods generally aligned, particularly for aligning the front passageways for movement of carriers 37 and master carriers 38, '38 therealong (FIG. 1). As best shown in FIG. 7, the master carriers include one or more rollers 3 3a disposed in the front passageway and a master slide body 38b supported on the rollers and extending downwardly to a level below the passageway. An outrigger 380 is mounted on the body 3811 and extends rearwardly therefrom. The outrigger has one or more slides 3 8d mounted adjacent the rear end thereof and extending into the slot 3 3 and guidably engaging the flanges 33a and 33b. As best shown in FIG. 2, splice member 14 has a right hand portion for engagement with elongate rod section 10 and a left hand portion for engagement with rod section 12. The left hand portion is a generally L- shaped portion for lying contiguous to the inner surface of elongate rod section 12 between flange 34 a and rail 36 and includes a top wall 61 and side wall 42. The longitudinal edge 41a of the top wall 41 is arranged for engagement with rail 36 and the longitudinal edge 42a of the side wall 42 is arranged for engagement with flange 34a. After engagement of the left hand portion of the splice member :14 with elongate rod section 12, it is preferable that the splice member be secured in place and, in the embodiment illustrated, this is accomplished by means of fastener 43 such as a rivet best shown in FIG. 6. The right hand portion of splice member 14 is shown in the form of an inverted U-shaped member, one leg of which is conveniently formed by side wall =42. A slightly narrower extension 41 of top wall 41 forms another part of the right hand portion and has a depending wall 44 attached thereto. In the embodiment illustrated, depending wall 44 is of slightly narrower height than side wall 42 as best shown in FIGS. 4 and 6, for a purpose which will hereinafter become apparent. The right hand portion of splice member 114 is arranged for insertion in the rear passageway of elongate rod section 10 to lie contiguous to the inner surface thereof between flanges 32a and 31a. Sidewall 42 is arranged so that its longitudinal edge 4211 engages tflange 32a; however, as explained above, depending wall 44 is narrower than sidewall 42 .and less than the distance between flange 61a and top wall portion 22a so that it loosely engages [flange 31a as the splice member is inserted into the rear passageway. Additionally, top wall portion 41 is narrower than the rear passageway thereby aiding in easy insertion of the right hand portion into that passageway. -A securing means is provided for securing of the right hand portion to elongate rod 10 and, in the embodiment illustrated is in the form of a boss 45 on the depending wall 44. Boss 4 preferably extends toward wall 31 (see FIGS. 3 and 7) and toward flange 3111 (see FIGS. 4, 6 and 7) for engaging the same and thereby holding side wall 42 closely adjacent wall 32 and holding top Wall portion 41 closely adjacent rear portion 22a of the rod 10. The boss 45 is preferably located adjacent the center of splice member 14 so that the splice means may be inserted a distance into elongate rod before the boss engages the aforementioned inner surface and before the securing operation comes into effect to frictionally secure the splice member to the rod. The right hand portion conveniently has a plurality of openings 47 (see FIG. 3) and elongate rod 10 can have a hole drilled therein for passage of a fastener 48 (see FIG. 1) to more firmly secure the splice member to elongate rod section 10 or for mounting purposes. Similarly, left hand portion of splice member 114 has openings 49 therein advantageously aligned with openings 49' in elongate rod section 12 (see FIG. 6) for passage of fasteners 48 (FIG. 1) for mounting purposes. It is now deemed obvious that the splice member has longitudinal edges engaged with the longitudinal projections or rails of each rod adjacent the abutted ends thereof for holding the rods generally aligned and for holding them in said abutted relationship, as best shown in FIG. 3.

When the drapery support is utilized as a traverse rod, it is usual in the art to provide draw cords such as at 51, 51' (see FIG. 1) which are connected to the master slides 38, 38' and to provide pulleys adjacent the end of the rod for the cord. \For this purpose, pulley housing 16 is provided and the present invention provides a particularly advantageous means of mounting the pulley housing on the rod. In general, pulley housing 16 includes a top wall means including portions 52 and 53 (see FIG. 6) and a pair of generally parallel side members 54 and 55 depending therefrom. A pair of pulleys 56 and 57 are rotatably supported between the aforedescribed parallel side members as on shafts 58 and '59, respectively. It is contemplated that in some uses, only one pulley may be required and the illustration of two pulleys should be understood to be only an example.

The present invention includes a fastening means for mounting the pulley housing in one of the elongate rod sections. While it is contemplated that the fastening means may be mounted directly on one rod section, for example rod section 12, it is preferable to provide the fastening means on the left hand portion of splice member 14. As best shown in FIG. 3, the fastening mean is in the form of an L-shaped tongue or hook 66, a boss 64, and a screw 62 arranged in that order in one direction along the rod section. The hook 66 preferably has its open end pointing toward the other fastening means and, as shown, is arranged to underlie and engage a shoulder 52a at one end of the top wall 52 of the pulley housing to restrain the pulley housing against movement longitudinally of rod section 12 toward the abutted rod section 10 and to also support that end of the pulley housing against downward movement away from rod section 12. Boss 64 is arranged to engage a shoulder 52b at the opposite end of top wall portion 52 (see FIG. 6) and retain the housing from movement in a direction away from the hook 66. Fastener or screw 62 is arranged to engage a shoulder 53a at one end of top wall portion 53 and restrain the pulley housing against downward movement away from the rod section. When fastener 62 is loosened, the housing pivots around hook 66 and shoulder 52]) drops slightly away from rod section 12 thereby disengaging from boss 64 and allowing removal of the housing from hook 66 by movement in a direction away from the hook. When, on the other hand, screw 62 is tightened as illustrated in FIG. 6, boss 64 engages shoulder 52a and holds the pulley housing from movement away from the hook and the fastening means securely hold the housing in operative position. It can be seen that fastener 62 need be only loosened slightly to allow removal of the pulley housing and that top wall portions 52 and 53 are spaced apart to provide an opening for passage of the head of fastener 62 when the pulley housing is being removed from its operative position. In this manner the pulley housing may be quickly and easily removed or inserted with complete assurance that when the pulley housing is installed it will be firmly and accurately aligned in place. In the embodiment illustrated, the pulley housing 16 is aligned with the rear passageway of rod section 10. Since there is no rear passageway in end rod section 12, the pulley housing more or less provides a continuation of the rear passage of elongate rod 10. For this purpose, side member 55, when installed, is closely adjacent side wall 42 of the splice member 14 and side member 54 is generally aligned with first wall 31 of rod 14 Also, one end of the pulley housing (see FIGS. 4 and 6) is mounted approximately at the abutted end of elongate end rod 12 whereby the side member 54 is substantially abutted to first wall 31. The pulley housing 16 conveniently has a slide gate 72 removably mounted thereon as by fastener 73 secured in opening 76 (FIG. 2) to provide for insertion and removal of the carriers in the front passageway. For this purpose, bottom wall 24 has a cut-away portion designated at 74 in FIG. 3, with which the slide gate cooperates. Slide gate 72 has an opening '79 (see FIG. 1) for passage of the head of fastener 73. The fastener is started in opening 76 and a tab '77 (FIG. 4) fits into slot 78 to hold the slide gate in position while the fastener is being tightened. Likewise, it can be seen that fastener 73 can be loosened and the slide gate removed. In this manner, carriers can be quickly and easily inserted into or removed from the front passageway without removal of the fastener. Pulley housing 16 advantageously has a second slot 78 and a second opening 7 6 in side member 55 to provide for a slide gate when the pulley housing is reversed and utilized with elongate end rod section 13, for example. The pulley housing conveniently has a clip 75 mounted thereon by a fastener passing through opening 76' for receiving a drapery hook to wrap the drapery around the end of the rod, if desired.

It is now deemed obvious that the present invention includes a particularly advantageous splice member engagable with a pair of elongate rods for aligning the same and holding them in abutted relationship and that the splice member has means for engaging and holding a pulley housing in a particularly advantageous manner whereby the housing may be easily inserted or removed without removal of the screw thus reducing the amount of work or complication involved.

While we have thus described a preferred embodiment of our invention it has been done by way of illustration and not limitation and we do not wish to be limited except as required by the appended claims.

We claim:

1. A support for draperies and the like comprising first and second elongate rod sections having inner and outer surfaces and abutted end to end, at least one of said rod sections having wall means defining at least one passageway and a slot extending generally the full length of the passageway, said wall means of said one of said rod sections including a pair of generally parallel Walls attached to a third wall, a pair of longitudinal rails on the inner surface of said wall means of said one rod section and spaced from said slot, said pair of longitudinal rails being disposed one on each of the parallel walls, and internal splice means having longitudinal edges on one end portion thereof engaged with the longitudinal rails of said one rod section adjacent the abutted ends of the rod sections for holding the rod sections generally aligned and in said abutted relationship, said one end portion of said splice means being contiguous to the inner surface of said one parallel Walls and said third wall of said rod section in an area between said longitudinal rails, and means for securing the other end portion of the splice means to the other rod section.

2. The combination of claim 1 wherein the other of said rod sections has wall means including first and second longitudinally extending wall portions disposed in planes relatively transverse to each other, a first longitudinal rail on the inner surface of the first wall portion and a second longitudinal rail on the inner surface of the second wall portion, said other end portion of said splice means extending contiguous to said first and second wall portions and with the edges thereof engaging said first and second rails.

3. A support for draperies and the like comprising:

a first elongate rod section having a front passageway defined by a generally upright front wall and top and bottom walls attached thereto, the bottom wall having an upwardly extending flange portion and the top wall having a downwardly extending flange portion, said flanges spaced from each other to define a rearwardly opening slot providing access to the front passageway, said top wall having a rear portion extending rearwardly from said passageway, a pair of parallel wall means attached to said rear portion and depending therefrom, said parallel wall means being spaced rearwardly from said slot and extending generally the full length of the rod to define a rear passageway;

a second elongate rod section having a front passageway defined by front, top and bottom walls having a crosssection generally identical with the walls of the first rod section, said top wall having a rear portion extending rearwardly from said passageway, at least one depending wall attached to said rear portion and substantially aligned with one of said parallel wall means of the first rod section when the front passageways of each rod section are aligned; and

internal splice means disposed inside said first and second rod sections rearwardly of the front passageway for holding the rod sections abutted end to end and with their front passageways substantially aligned, said splice means being contiguous to the rear portion of the top wall of each rod section, and fastening means for securing the splice means to said first and second rod sections.

4. A support for draperies and the like comprising:

a first elongate rod section having a front passageway defined by a generally upright front wall and top and bottom walls attached thereto, the bottom wall having an upwardly extending flange portion and the top wall having a downwardly extending flange portion, said flanges spaced from each other to define a rearwardly opening slot providing access to the front passageway, said top wall having a rear portion extending rearwardly from said passageway, a pair of parallel Wall means attached to said rear portion and depending therefrom, said parallel wall means being spaced rearwardly from said slot and extending generally the full length of the rod to define a rear passageway;

a second elongate rod section having a front passageway defined by front, top and bottom walls having a crosssection generally identical with the walls of the first rod section, said top wall having a rear portion extending rearwardly from said passageway, at least one depending wall attached to said rear portion and substantially aligned with one of said parallel wall means of the first rod section when the front passageways of each rod section are aligned;

internal splice mean-s disposed inside said first and second rod sections rearwardly of the front passageway for holding the rod sections abutted end to end and with their front passageways substantially aligned, said splice means being contiguous to the rear portion of the top wall of each rod section, and fastening means for securing the splice means to said first and second rod sections; and

a pulley housing contiguous to a portion of the splice means engaged with said second rod section, said pulley housing having a pair of parallel side members spaced from each other, one side member being closely adjacent said depending wall of the second rod section and the other side member being substantially aligned with the other of said parallel walls of the first rod section, at least one pulley rotatably sup- 2' ported between the side members, and means for securing the pulley housing in position.

5. A support for draperies and the like comprising:

a first elongate rod section having a front passageway defined by a generally upright front wall and top and bottom walls attached thereto, the bottom wall having an upwardly extending flange portion and the top wall having a downwardly extending flange portion, said fianges spaced from each other to define a rearwardly opening slot providing access to the front passageway, said top wall having a rear portion extending rearwardly from said passageway, a pair of parallel wall means attached to said rear portion and depending therefrom, said parallel wall means being spaced rearwardly from said slot and extending generally the full length of the rod to define a rear passageway having a second longitudinal slot and first and second rails on said pair of parallel wall means each spaced from said second longitudinal slot and extending into said rear passageway;

a second elongate rod section having a front passageway defined by front, top and bottom walls having a cross-section generally identical with the walls of the first rod section, said top wall having a rear portion extending rearwardly from said passageway, a depending wall attached to said rear portion and substantially aligned with one of said parallel wall means of the first rod section when the front passageways of the rod sections are aligned, a rail depending from said rear portion and spaced from said depending wall and having a flange portion extending toward the depending wall;

a splice means for holding the rods abutted end to end and with their front passageways generally aligned and having a first portion contiguous to the rear passageway of the first rod section and engaged with said first and second rails, said splice means having a second portion contiguous to the second rod section and engaged with said depending wall and said depending rail for securing the second portion of the splice means to the second rod section, said second portion having an L-shaped tongue, a depending projection and a fastening means arranged in order therealong; and

a pulley housing contiguous to said second portion and having a top wall means and a pair of parallel side members depending therefrom, one of said side members being in juxtaposition to the depending wall of the second rod section and the other side member being substantially aligned with the other of said parallel walls of the first rod section, at least one pulley rotatably supported between the side members, said top wall means having one end engaged with the L-shaped tongue, and means describing a shoulder engaged with said depending projection, and said top wall means having an opening therein for passage of the fastening means.

6. A support for draperies and the like comprising an elongate rod, a pulley housing removably mounted on the rod and including a top wall means and a pair of generally parallel side members depending therefrom, said top wall means having means describing a plurality of shoulders extending generally crosswise of the pulley housing and including a first and a second shoulder facing in one direction and a third shoulder facing in a direction opposite said one direction, at least one pulley rotatably supported between said side members, and fastening means for mounting the pulley housing on the rod and including a generally L-shaped tongue for engaging said first shoulder to retain the pulley housing from movement in said one direction and for underlying a portion of the top wall mens to retain the pulley housing from downward movement, a projection for engaging said third shoulder to retain the pulley housing from movement in a direction opposite said one direction, and a screw for engaging said second shoulder to retain the pulley housing from downward movement and arranged to be loosened whereby the pulley housing pivots about said L-shaped tongue and disengages the third shoulder from said projection for allowing the pulley housing to be re moved by movement in a direction opposite to said one direction, said top wall means having an opening for passage of the screw for allowing the pulley housing to be 10 removed from the rod without removal of the screw.

7. The combination of claim 6 wherein said opening in the top wall means defines said second and third shoulders, said third shoulder is intermediate said first and second shoulders, and said projection is intermediate said L-shaped tongue and said screw.

8. A support for draperies and the like comprising first and second elongate rod sections abutted end to end, splice means having one portion engaged with the inside of said first rod section and a second portion engaged with the inside of said second rod section for holding the rod sections generally aligned and in said abutted relationship, a pulley housing removably mounted on the second portion of the splice means and including a top wall means and a pair of generally parallel side members depending therefrom, said top wall means having means describing a plurality of shoulders extending generally crosswise of the pulley housing, at least one pulley rotatably supported between said side members, fastening means on the second portion of the splice means for mounting the pulley housing and including a generally L-shaped tongue facing in a direction away from the first rod section for engaging one of said shoulders to retain the pulley housing from movement toward the first rod section and from downward movement, a projection for engaging another of said shoulders to retain the pulley housing from movement away from the first rod section, and a screw for engaging a third of said shoulders to retain the pulley housing from downward movement and arranged to be loosened whereby the pulley housing may pivot around said L-shaped tongue and disengage said other shoulder from the projection for allowing the pulley housing to be removed by movement in a direction away from the first rod section, said top wall means having an opening for passage of the screw for allowing the pulley housing to be removed without removal of the screw.

9. In a support for draperies and the like including first and second elongate rod sections abutted end to end, the improvement comprising: internal splice means engaged with the inside of each said rod section for holding the rod sections generally aligned and in said abutted relationship, a pulley housing removably mounted on the internal splice means and including means defining a top wall and spaced side walls depending therefrom, at least one pulley rotatably mounted between said side walls, F said top wall having means defining a plurality of shoulders extending generally crosswise of the pulley housing, fastening means on the splice means for mounting the pulley housing and including a generally L-shaped tongue facing in one direction for engaging one of said shoulders to retain the pulley housing from downward movement and from movement in a direction opposite said one direction, a projection for engaging another of said shoulders to retain the pulley housing from movement in said one direction, and fastening means engaged with the top wall in one position for retaining the pulley housing from downward movement and arranged for movement from said one position for pivoting of the pulley housing about said L-shaped tongue and disengaging the other shoulder from the projection to remove the pulley 0 housing.

19. A support for draperies and the like comprising first and second elongate rod sections having inner and outer surfaces and abutted end to end, at least one of said rod sections having wall means defining at least one 75 passageway and a slot extending generally the full length of the passageway, a pair of longitudinal rails on the inner surface of said one passageway of said one rod section, internal splice means having longitudinal edges on one end portion thereof engaged with the longitudinal rails of said one rod section adjacent the abutted ends of the rod sections for holding the rod sections ganerally aligned and in said abutted relationship, said one end portion of said internal splice means being contiguous to the inner surface of the passageway in an area between said longitudinal rails, a boss on said one end portion of the internal splice means at one of the longitudinal edges thereof for frictionally securing the internal splice means to the one rod section, said boss extending toward the inner surface of said one rod section and de fiining a portion of said one longitudinal edge for engaging the adjacent longitudinal rail, said boss being spaced from the end of the internal splice means whereby the internal splice means may be inserted a distance into the one rod section before the boss engages the inner surface and the longitudinal rail.

11. A support for draperies and the like comprising a rod including first and second elongate rod sections having inner and outer surfaces and abutted end-to-end, said first rod section having first, second and third wall portions arranged in a generally U-shaped configuration and defining a passageway having a slot extending generally the full length of the passageway, said second rod section having first and second wall portions arranged in a generally L-shaped configuration and aligned with said first and second wall portions of said first rod section, a drapery master carrier having means extending into said slot and movable lengthwise of the rod, cord means for moving said master carrier, an internal splice member having a first end portion of generally U-shaped configuration shaped to extend into said first rod section along the inner surface thtreof with the longitudinal edges of the first splice end portion spaced from said slot, said splice member having a second end portion of generally L-shaped configuration shaped to extend into said second rod section along the inner surfaces thereof, said first rod section having integral longitudinally extending splice locating means on the interior thereof at the longitudinally extending edges of said first end portion of the splice member for retainingly engaging the same, said second rod section having integral longitudinally extending splice locating means at the longitudinal edges of said second end portion of the splice member to retainingly engage the same whereby to hold said rod sections in aligned relation, and cord guide means in said rod.

12. A support for draperies and the like in accordance with claim 11 wherein said cord guide means is mounted on said splice member.

References Cited UNITED STATES PATENTS 2,238,984 4/ 1941 Richardson 346 3,060,489 10/ 1962 Blackmer 16-94 3,155,149 11/1964 Ford 160-346 MARVIN A. CHAMPION, Primary Examiner.

J. H. MCGLYNN, Assistant Examiner.

UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE CERTIFICATE OF CORRECTION Patent No. 3,341,886 September 19, 1967 Joseph V. Graber et a1.

It is hereby certified that error appears in the above numbered patent requiring correction and that the said Letters Patent should read as corrected below.

Column 5, line 63, before "parallel" strike out "one" and insert the same before "rod" in same line 63; column 7, line 73, for "mens" read means column 9, line 6, for "generally" read generally column 10, line 5, for "thtreof" read thereof Signed and sealed this 22nd day of October 1968.

(SEAL) Attest:

EDWARD J. BRENNER Commissioner of Patents Edward M. Fletcher, Jr.

Attesting Officer 

1. A SUPPORT FOR DRAPERIES AND THE LIKE COMPRISING FIRST AND SECOND ELONGATE ROD SECTIONS HAVING INNER AND OUTER SURFACE AND ABUTTED END TO END, AT LEAST ONE OF SAID ROD SECTIONS HAVING WALL MEANS DEFINING AT LEAST ONE PASSAGEWAY AND A SLOT EXTENDING GENERALLY THE FULL LENGTH OF THE PASSAGEWAY, SAID WALL MEANS OF SAID ONE OF SAID ROD SECTIONS INCLUDING A PAIR OF GENERALLY PARALLEL WALLS ATTACHED TO A THIRD WALL, A PAIR OF LONGITUDINAL RAILS ON THE INNER SURFACE OF SAID WALL MEANS OF SAID ONE ROD SECTION AND SPACE FORM SAID SLOT, SAID PAIR OF LONGITUDINAL RAILS BEING DISPOSED ON ON EACH OF THE PARALLEL WALLS, AND INTERNAL SPLICE MEANS HAVING LONGITUDINAL RAILS OF SAID TION THEREOF ENGAGE WITH THE LONGITUDINAL RAILS OF SAID ONE ROD SECTION ADJACENT THE ABUTTED ENDS OF THE ROD SECTIONS FOR HOLDING THE ROD SECTIONS GENERALLY ALIGNED AND IN SAID ABUTTED RELATIONSHIP, SAID ONE END PORTION OF SAID SPLICE MEANS BEING CONTIGUOUS TO THE INNER SURFACE OF SAID ONE PARALLEL WALLS AND SAID THIRD WALL OF SAID ROD SECTION IN AN AREA BETWEEN SAID LONGITUDINAL RAILS, AND MEANS, FOR SECURING THE OTHER END PORTION OF THE SPLICE MEANS TO THE OTHER ROD SECTION. 